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A small but mighty team of volunteers in Blind River is still rolling up its sleeves and getting things done, but they could use some help.
The 15 or so members of the Blind River Horticultural Society (BRHS) are looking to add to their numbers. “We have lots of things in the works, and lots of new things we would like to happen, but we need some help!” confessed Vice-President Sandy Lendrum.
The BRHS was founded in 1929, by a local minster and some concerned citizens, who wanted to help with beautification of the town. For decades, the BRHS was responsible for many large planters and garden boxes throughout Blind River, as well as gardens in the town parks and downtown.
Tree planting in public spaces was also the responsibility of the club. “If the town has the money, we get the trees and tell them where to put them,” said Lendrum.
The club has also been very busy establishing a seed library at the public library. Members, mainly Lendrum and President Allan Lendrum, have also been kept busy planting thousands of seeds to grow into plants for gardens and planters throughout the town.
The club is also responsible for the yearly Scarecrow and Pumpkin displays and contests each fall in downtown Blind River. “Everyone enjoys our scarecrow display,” smiled Lendrum. “And the pumpkin contest is very popular, we get lots of entries.”
Other items on the BRHS to do list? Workshops on gardening and other topics throughout the year, sponsoring a bursary for the local high school, monthly meetings from September to June, weeding out and destroying invasive species, becoming incorporated, getting grants, working closely with the library and the town…you can see why the club needs more members!
“The pandemic really affected our membership,” said Lendrum. “We are down to only about 15 members now and many of them are getting older and finding the manual labour part of the club is becoming too much for them. We really need some younger members, people that can get to work on some of the more physical tasks.”
All of the remaining members are really excited about the one hundredth anniversary of the club, in 2029. “We definitely want to all stay and be a part of that,” said Lendrum. “But we need some help to get there!”
The club has displays and membership information in the Blind River Library, so they recommend people go there to apply. Meetings are the first Tuesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. You can also check out the club’s Facebook page here.
“We have lots of exciting plans in the works for 2025,” said Lendrum. “We are going to make it all happen, but many hands definitely would make the work lighter for the rest of us. We are a fun group of people and excited to teach the love of gardening to the next generation!”
